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Sports talk station 680 and 93.7/The Fan has decided to part ways with Christopher Rude after 15 years as the morning host.

Chris Dimino and Nick Cellini will remain with a new name to be unveiled next month, according to David Dickey, who runs the station. The show for many years was called the Rude Awakening, even after Dimino and Cellini joined the show following their departures from the now defunct 790/The Zone.

“I did not renew his contract,” Dickey texted me this morning. “Chris [Rude] did a great job for us and we wish him well in his future endeavors.”

He feels Dimino and Cellini “can do a great morning show by themselves. You don’t necessarily need a third cast member in the room with them. Simple as that.”

Rude’s agent Norm Schrutt confirmed the news and plans to have lunch with Rude today. He suspects Rude would like to get back into rock radio. Rude worked for many years at 96rock before joining the Fan, coming to Atlanta in the late 1980s. He found a way to transition from rock to sports and survived an impressively long period of time.

Jamie Dukes, who worked with Rude from 2002 to 2005 on the Rude Awakening, said it appears Dickey wanted the 790/The Zone morning show on 680. (Steak Shapiro is on from 9 to noon so it’s more like two-thirds of the Zone morning show.)

“Everyone ages out of the system,” said Dukes, who worked for three years at 92.9/The Game as well. “All three are great broadcasters, good friends of mine. I can see why David would make that turn because Chris and Nick are so comfortable together. There’s the economics, too. I know Rude was the highest paid guy over there. There’s a multitude of factors. One thing I do know: David Dickey is a brilliant guy. He’s doing what’s in the best interests of the station.”

Dukes said Rude was his mentor as a broadcaster. “He’s a brilliant man. He taught me everything from how to endorse a client to timing to humor to when to interject.”

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Serves him right he let the me know backstab Fl Perry laurentino in the back and I I think that probably happened to him. I told him it would after Perry was let go since I think he did not have Perry's back. What goes around comes around and there's just proof of it.

Great move. Used to love Chris Rude on 96 Rock and hope he ends up with that kind of gig again, but he was out of place with Dimino and Cellini. he did an admirable job of trying to do/know sports, but made for too many awkward moments and creepy jokes.Just when you had an interesting discussion going about something sports related, Rude would interject middle school humor to make sure he got equal voice time. Leave the show as it is now - perfect chemistry with these two and Brandon.Keep Steak away!

Rude did an awesome job becoming a sports guy. Cellini is rotten, and just wrong for this market. His best shtick is that the local teams do not grant him access to do what would be considered his job. Steak is not good either. Dimino Rocks, however.

Cellini out, HomeTeam in... but with Dimino and Brandon a 3d would be needed.

Carlos is ready to become the broadcaster to lead the content and opinion of Chris and Brandon?

Its funny how Mike Bell can rehash the same jokes for 15 years and have his own show, but Rude who brought fresh material to the show every day gets let go. I guess that has more to say about Atlanta listeners than Christopher Rude's talent. Maybe if he digs up his bits he used to do at 96 Rock and just keeps dong them over and over , 92.9 the fan might give him his own show.

Don't like Nick Cellini one bit and I same goes for Steakie baby. Their egos make me wonder how they fit their heads in the building. I wonder how Atlanta sports fans put up with those two it is really a mystery to me. The only one worse in Atlanta is Mike Bell, Mr. Juvenile delinquent.

Chris brought so Much More to the morning show than sports!! His personality kept the show alive and moving forward. The "other guys", well, pretty darn boring, dry and dead.....Bad move to let Rude go. The only Southern guy on a Southern Radio Station. Now overrun with YANKEES!! Uuugh, the arrogance!!

Get ready for non stop Braves talk. Dimino only wants to talk baseball, couldn't care less about other sports, except for boxing sometimes. They will talk about the sorry Braves 10 out of 12 months. The Hawks on the other hand get about 10 minutes a month and that was only to talk about Dwight Howard. I bet Dimino and Celini couldn't even name 4 or 5 current Hawks.

This was inevitable. Dimino must have some kind of clout or something as he got his pal back on and has run off the rest. And you have to ask for what? It will be the show it always was...Dimino overanalyzing everything from a book cover to a PBJ sandwich and Cellini playing the mad guy. What makes this a horrendous decision frankly, is the fact that this show is so damn BORING. My word, it has not changed in over 10 plus years. I am not going to make personal statements because I don't know these guys personally and it serves no purpose. But please, if you want to catch 929, you have to change.....this is extremely predictable, boring radio and will never make any money in the long haul or short for that matter. Well, back to 929 and XM.....

Never liked those three when they were on 790 and still don't like them! Very irritating to listen to IMO. I listened to Rude & Perry Laurentino every day on 680 instead of those clowns on 790. I have been listening to 680 less and less ever since Dimono got Laurentino fired, and now I'll quit listening altogether since they dumped Rude. That former 790 trio is a joke!!!

Is anyone who listened to Atlanta sports talk radio TRULY surprised at this? It's actually took longer than I thought...

Listen, Rude is great and I'm pretty sure he will pop up on a rock station in Atlanta before the fall of this year, but, like them or not (and I like them) Domino and Cellini are definitely capable of holding down the morning show without any help (which means PLEASE don't add Steak to their team!). For those folks who haven't moved past Steve Gleason incident, I get it. But I truly think the guys have been sincere and honest about that situation and deserve a second chance to try it again. Good luck guys!

Always liked Rude. As long as they don't put that irritating Shapiro in his place. I turn the dial now at 9:00 and back in at noon. Just can't stand that guy. Atlanta has enough arrogant Yankees. He's one I can easily avoid.

Rude never meshed with Dimino. Too irreverent and plan silly at times. I like Rude but I always thought he was miss cast in sports talk. Didn't seem to have a passion or knowledge for it. I like Cellini and Dimino. But I do think they need someone else in the booth. Cellini keeps Dimino from being too serious but another voice would make them work and sound better. Rude just wasn't it imo. Hope he lands at a rocker.

Rude is a relic, past time for him to go. If he was in high school in the early 70's he's got to be 60 years old. The guy said it was no big deal and fans should get over it the day after the Falcons lost the Super Bowl-are you serious

Dimino and Cellini are pros, have chemistry and like sports. I heard the A-Rod interview and it was great. Rude would rather talk about Dancing with the stars and tell Hogan's Heros jokes.

92.9 morning show really? An old geezer in Fricke and Hugh "I don't know nothin'" Douglas.

The fact is they don't keep you in radio unless you are profitable or useful, Rude is 20 years behind the times.

Can we ship Steak Shapiro back to Boston? Simply the worst sports talk host in America. Loud, obnoxious, hogs airtime and talks over the other hosts, can't shut up for any amount of time. Doesn't matter what kind of person he is, he does not belong here on sports talk radio. He also caters to degenerates with his comments and plugs (and I've heard dozens of these people while in multiple cities). Just awful.